Why Did Homelander Choke Soldier Boy in ‘The Boys’ Season 5 and Is He Dead?

Few shows on television have crafted a villain as intricately terrifying as ‘The Boys‘ has with Homelander, and the penultimate episode of the final season showcases this perfectly. Season five has relentlessly escalated tensions, pushing every significant character to their limits while gradually dismantling the last barriers between Homelander and absolute authoritarian control. By the time episode seven arrives, the show’s world feels genuinely bleak, and that atmosphere is entirely intentional.

As the fifth and final season approaches its conclusion, Homelander has effectively transformed Vought International into a multifaceted Christian nationalist movement, driven by an inflated ego and a yearning for reverence as a god. This foundation has been laid throughout the season, but episode seven crystallizes it with punishing clarity. The episode explores the aftermath of Soldier Boy handing the V1 virus to Homelander, effectively making him invincible as he murders the president and begins tightening his grip through Vought propaganda and fear.

It is within this context that the moment many viewers are eager to understand unfolds. After disbanding The Seven as part of a Vought rebranding effort, Homelander excitedly reveals plans for a new theme park called Homeland, believing he has finally gained his father’s approval. However, Soldier Boy shatters that illusion entirely. He discloses that he only gave Homelander the V1 serum because Stormfront would have wanted it, and bluntly tells him he is not a god, merely too strange, which is essentially Homelander’s worst nightmare. Instead of conforming to the role of a Vought poster boy, Soldier Boy declares his intention to head to Bogotá, Colombia, to live life on his own terms.

As Soldier Boy attempts to walk away, Homelander seizes him from behind and chokes him, with Soldier Boy later confirmed to be alive and placed back into cryostasis by his son. The chokehold is effective not because Homelander is significantly stronger, but because Soldier Boy is caught off guard, unable to harness his radioactive blast. The power disparity between the two supes has always been minimal, but the element of surprise accomplishes what sheer strength could not.

Homelander opts to freeze his father instead of killing him outright, suggesting that Soldier Boy will play a crucial role in the final confrontation leading to the series finale. This choice aligns with everything the show has established about Homelander’s psyche. He cannot bear the thought of Soldier Boy living freely and rejecting the god narrative, yet killing his own father would obliterate the last vestige of family he clings to. Cryostasis is the only solution that satisfies both his cruelty and his need.

Meanwhile, the Boys are devising a risky plan to use the same radiation treatment that created Soldier Boy to transform Kimiko into a force capable of taking down Homelander, while their efforts to expose Homelander’s ultimate agenda go awry. Frenchie makes one last stand against Homelander to protect Kimiko but proves no match for the all-powerful supe, dying in her arms during the episode’s most heartbreaking moment.

With only one episode left, ‘The Boys’ has set the stage for a finale where Homelander is at his strongest yet most isolated, Soldier Boy is frozen and waiting, and the Boys have lost one of their own. If you have theories about whether Soldier Boy will awaken in time for the final battle or if Homelander will finally meet his match, the comments section is the perfect place to discuss.